Meet The Staff!

Ashley Farrell, PR Intern

Ashley Farrell has been a PR Intern for Docs for Tots since November 2016. She received her Bachelor’s of Science in Community Health from Hofstra University in May 2017, and holds a passion for working among children and elderly populations. Ashley hopes to continue this work in the future as she is eager to make an impact on the community.

1) What makes you excited about working for DFT?
There are two kinds of generations I am passionate about: children and the elderly. Docs for Tots gave me the opportunity to work with children and has broadened my outlook on early childhood. Though I am not a native to Long Island, I was given a chance to make a difference and give back to the community. Knowing that I’m apart of an organization with individuals who are successful and overzealous about seeking and addressing problems that various communities face makes me excited to put in the work. I’ve learned about the barriers and complications in early childhood, worked on those issues, and made a lasting impact.

2) What projects have you completed/will you complete that you are most excited about?
I was blessed to have the opportunity to work on some of the big projects, including Help Me Grow, which is a universal platform by which screening opportunities for children and families are linguistically accessible, and Well Moms, Well Tots which ensures that mothers facing maternal depression are screened and have better access to mental health resources.
The project I was most excited about was the Developmental Screening initiative because as a team we were able to identify an issue on Long Island and actually make a change to the children of the future.

3) What would you love to see happen in the future with this work?
In the future, I would like to see more effort and interventions put forward that screen for different types of issues society faces. At Docs for Tots, we focus on younger children, but there are many other issues that get ignored or are unaddressed. Everybody in the community should come together and help all ages. I’d also like to see the achievement gap decrease. I know we’re doing much better than before because children are starting school earlier—now let’s see how far we can get and the impact it’ll have later down the line.